Related papers: MOCCA code for star cluster simulations - I. Blue …
The shape of the radial distribution of Blue Straggler Stars (BSS), when normalized to a reference population of Horizontal Branch (HB) stars, has been found to be a powerful indicator of the dynamical evolution reached by a Globular…
Galaxy clusters are excellent cosmological probes provided that their formation and evolution within the large scale environment are precisely understood. Therefore studies with simulated galaxy clusters have flourished. However detailed…
(abridged) We use newly available empirical binary fractions for globular clusters to carry out a direct test of the binary evolution hypothesis, and of collisional channels that involve binary stars. More specifically, using the previously…
Recent observations estimate that 30% of early B and O-type stars are found in triple systems. So far, the evolution of triple star systems has mainly been modeled using fast stellar codes. Their accuracy decreases with increasing mass,…
We present a method to couple N-body star cluster simulations to a cosmological tidal field, using the Astrophysical Multipurpose Software Environment. We apply this method to star clusters embedded in the CosmoGrid dark matter-only…
In a previous paper we introduced a new method for simulating collisional gravitational $N$-body systems with linear time scaling on $N$, based on the Multi-Particle Collision (MPC) approach. This allows us to simulate globular clusters…
We investigate the structural evolution of young star clusters forming within centrally concentrated molecular clouds. Our simulations use the Torch framework, which integrates the FLASH magnetohydrodynamics code with the AMUSE environment,…
Blue straggler stars (BSSs) are believed to form through mass transfer in binary systems or stellar collisions. The reported presence of double BSS sequences in some globular clusters (GCs) has been interpreted as evidence that these two…
We present theoretical models for stellar black hole (BH) properties in young, massive star clusters. Using a Monte Carlo code for stellar dynamics, we model realistic star clusters with $N\simeq 5\times10^5$ stars and significant binary…
Recent surveys of the blue straggler (BS) population in the galactic globular cluster M3 (NGC 5272) give the first complete characterization of the number density of BSs as a function of radius over an entire globular cluster. The BSs in M3…
We describe a star cluster formation model that includes individual star formation from self-gravitating, magnetized gas, coupled to collisional stellar dynamics. The model uses the Astrophysical Multi-purpose Software Environment (AMUSE)…
The nuclei of galaxies often host small stellar discs with scale-lengths of a few tens of parsecs and luminosities up to 10^7 Lsun. To investigate the formation and properties of nuclear stellar discs (NSDs), we look for their presence in a…
We present a series of $N$-body simulations representing the evolution of a galactic nucleus and its stellar content in a nearly one-to-one representation. The aim of this suite of simulations is to shed light on the interplay between…
We have used the ``dynamical clock'' to measure the level of dynamical evolution reached by three Galactic globular clusters (namely, NGC 3201, NGC 6316 and NGC 6440). This is an empirical method that quantifies the level of central…
Nuclear Star Clusters (NSCs) are dense stellar systems located at the centers of galaxies. Employing Enzo-Abyss, which integrates hydrodynamics with a direct N-body solver, we introduce a simulation capable of resolving the evolution of…
We study the evolution of embedded clusters. The equations of motion of the stars in the cluster are solved by direct N-body integration while taking the effects of stellar evolution and the hydrodynamics of the natal gas content into…
We explore the behaviour of accreting protoclusters with a Monte Carlo dynamical code in order to evaluate the relative roles of accretion, two body relaxation and stellar collisions in the cluster evolution. We corroborate the suggestion…
We study the possible rotation of cluster galaxies, developing, testing and applying a novel algorithm which identifies rotation, if such does exist, as well as its rotational centre, its axis orientation, rotational velocity amplitude and,…
In this thesis, we aim to further elucidate the phenomenon of galaxy evolution in the environment of galaxy clusters using the methodology of numerical simulations. For that, we have developed hydrodynamic models in which idealized gas-rich…
We have used multi-band high resolution HST WFPC2 and ACS observations combined with wide field ground-based observations to study the blue straggler star (BSS) population in the galactic globular cluster NGC 6388. As in several other…